Anyone knows what this is?

[Azul17]

First time I see it. Looks like a worm. It was coming out of a rock.

 

[spoonman]

It is a bristle worm. Harmless to your tank. Will stick you if you touch it.

 

[Azul17]

Are they good or bad? How do u get bristle worms in the first place? How do u get rid of them?

 

[spoonman]

There are bristle worm traps or you can catch them at night with tweezers or something similar. The bristles will stick you like fiberglass. They wont harm fish or corals. Most that remove them just dont like the look of them. Probably came in your live rock. I got some with a Green Star Polyp that I bought on craigslist.

 

[FTMMWS]

No worries ,they are common LR hitchikers,,,used to be considered bad ,but now considered harmless..just leave it

 

[Azul17]

Ok. Thank you!

 

[Azul17]

Is there any fish/crab that would it this worm?

 

[Flipping minow]

I have a couple in my tank, and my question is do these reproduce?

 

[spoonman]

They do reproduce. They are also a good part of your CUC. They eat stuff that accumulates on the sand and in the rocks. I have a huge one in my tank. I just leave him alone and he does his thing.

 

[Boiler Reef]

over feeding can cause a population explosion, of bristle worms and then when you correct the over feeding they will die off and that can be an ammonia problem. I have several in my tank at the present time, with no problems. I have been told that they may kill clams by eating their way in thru the clams foot. I have not experienced this so far. have had a clam in the tank with the worms for over a year. I consider them an important part of the CUC

 

[Flipping minow]

I have one that lives around a colony of Zoos, and since then these zoos will not open. It could be unrelated. In this colony of zoos there are green and pink ones. The green ones are growing fast, and the pink ones barely open.

Could this be because of bristle worm?

 

[mr_X]

I think the worm is smelling the failing zoas, and just hanging in there for a good meal. I don't think it's the cause of a coral failing.

 

[Flipping minow]

How do I save the zoos. My paramiters are great. There is a different type of zoo in the colony that is growing like a weed. I am not sure if those zoos are out competing the dying ones.

 

[mr_X]

That's proof that it's not the worm then. I don't know what the zoas that are unhappy are not getting. I've heard that some like more light than others, and some are much slower growing than others. I don't keep them, so I can't help you more than that.